Well I am going to attempt changing the original optispark and water pump on my 92 with 70,000 miles. Is this job reasonably easy to perform in a garage with no hoist? any suggestions on which distributor to use? I found a good deal on a new Ac Delco. I heard good things about MSD's but they are very expensive! Thanks

 

You do not need a hoist, but raise the front end enough to get under it to tap the crank pulley off if you need to. It is straightforward and a one day job (long as the crank pulley isn't frozen to the hub). I would say the stock AC Delco is best for the money, but stay away from ebay as there are some real crap opti's on there. With that mileage a water pump change at the same time would be a darn good idea.

 

ps--good time to change the plug wires as well. Pass side easy, driver's side loosen the p/s pump and slide it forward about 1/2" in order to route the plug wires.

 

You don't really need to lift the engine, but get the car up high enough on jackstands to get under it so you can wack the damper off.

Don't know where you are or I'd offer to help. Did mine last year.

 

Thanks for the help

 

After you get the opti on and before the water pump is reinstalled test start the engine (run just a few secs). It is very easy to get the early
Style opti miss timed (I know) and you dont want to have to drain the
coolant twice. Good luck its not that hard.

 

I, too, have a 92 and I did what you are doing several years ago and wrote a detailed article about my project. It's long and talks about an oil leak I had to fix. I also upgraded to an electric water pump. I hope it helps you out.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/techti...=231&TopicID=2

 

The MSD's are more money but I think the quality and sealing is better. And if you get the stock GM, you still should buy or build a vent line. I put a MSD on my 92 because I'm keeping it.
Getting the timing (rotor position) isn't a problem. The 92/93 opti is connected by a splined drive shaft. One of the splines is much larger that the others and that keys ot to the rotor and drive plate. If these are off, the opti won't go on the whole way, don't force it. If the shaft position is correct, the opti will slide on easily and be flush with the block.

If you do decide on a MSD, the plug on the harness won't fit a 92 Vette, it must be hardwired. No problem, just 4 wires to solder and heatshrink. I have the wiring diagram if anyone wants it.

 

About the crank pulley, I would spray some good degreaser if you've never had the crank pulley off otherwise you could damage it by hammering it off. To avoid shocking the metal, I would use a rubber mallet since you won't be able to fit a pulley puller between the pulley and the frame. Expect some scuffed knuckles and a few hours!

 

You can get the pully off by going underneath the car with a 2ft. dowel, wood/metal. I use a 2ft.,1/2 in drive extension. Put the dowel on the balancer right beside the crank flange, NOT on the OD of the balancer. Give it a wack with hammer then move to the otherside of the oilpan and hit that side. The balancer on my 92 had never been off and it took only 5 hits. Make sure you're not hitting in the outside of the balancer where there's rubber molded in and you'll be fine.

Hint: Use antisieze on the balancer OD where it contacts the crank flange and it will fall off easily if you have to remove it again.

 

What years had the opti-spark?

 

1992 - 1996 Corvette LT1 and LT4 Engines.

 

I was not able to get the damper off by hitting it from underneath. I used a puller with extended bolts to go between the cross supports.

 

Where did you get your OPTI? PM me if you dont want to post it. Price too please.

 

I'd STRONGLY encourage you to NOT install another OEM Opti in your '92. The '92 used the deficient first-generation Opti, and a replacement unit will be as deficient as the one you're removing.

Consider the MSD as an aftermarket solution that should serve you much better than the OEM replacement. If DynaSpark is still in business (which seems to be in doubt these days), consider their product as well.

If you have a good set of general mechanic's tools, and decent mechanical skills, you can tackle the Opti swap yourself. No special tools are required. Here are a few tech tips I wrote up some time ago about doing an Opti swap:

--------

Get a Factory Service Manual, and follow the procedure it lays out.

A few tips (I'm going from memory here, so I'll probably forget a few things):

Drain the cooling system.

Disconnect the MAF sensor and IAT sensor and remove the air intake duct with the MAF and IAT as an assembly.

Disconnect the ECT sensor and remove it from the water pump.

Remove the serpentine belt and tensioner.

You may find that you’ll need to unbolt the coil/ICM bracket from the front of the right cylinder head. I can’t recall for sure whether or not I did.

Unbolt (but don't remove) the power steering pump. This will help you to sneak the new plug wires in/out behind the pump, but may also be somewhat helpful when working on the water pump/Opti.

If you want more room to work, you can remove the radiator, but it isn't strictly necessary, and it involves considerably more work to remove it (I left mine in place).

The FSM will tell you that you need a special Kent-Moore puller to remove the crank pulley/damper. You don't. Here's how to get it off:

1. Raise the front of the vehicle enough that you can get under the car (it's also helpful to have it at a more comfortable height while you're working from above).

2. Remove the three bolts that secure the pulley/damper to the hub.

3. Mark the damper and hub so that you can easily see how to realign them to each other later.

4. Slide under the car with a long pry bar or hardwood dowel (I use a jumbo Snap-On screwdriver that's around two feet long) and a mallet.

5. Place the tip of the pry bar against the rear face of the damper, as close to the hub as possible (Ideally rest the tip alongside of the hub).

6 Give the pry bar a few whacks with the mallet, and with any luck the damper will pop off without too much of a fight.

You may find it helpful to apply a few whacks, then rotate the crankshaft in 120* increments, whacking it a few times at each interval (I haven't needed to do this).

It's also helpful to, if possible, shoot a bit of penetrating oil where the damper meets the hub, a day or more in advance of doing the job.

After you get the damper off, clean the damper/hub mating surfaces to remove all corrosion, etc, and apply a very thin coating of anti-seize compound to these surfaces before you reassemble the damper to the hub. This should make it a lot easier to get the damper off next time.

Once the damper is removed, rotate the crankshaft so that one wing of the damper hub is at the six-o'clock position. This will position the other two wings at around the ten- and two-o'clock positions. In this orientation, the Opti will clear the hub as it is being removed/installed.

The Opti basically unbolts and pulls off as you'd expect, once you have the water pump and damper out of the way.

Once the Opti is out of the way, inspect the shaft seals for the Opti, water pump, and crankshaft. If they show any signs of leakage, replace them now.

When you install the new Opti, be sure to align it correctly with the cam gear, and don't force it into place against the timing cover (do NOT use the bolts to draw it into place). At most, give it a gentle bump with the heel of your hand to encourage it to pop into place.

Reassemble everything else.

Follow the cooling system refill procedure in the FSM carefully, and you'll have no problems with this. In particular, be sure to bleed the air out of the system as it's being refilled.

You'll never have a better shot at swapping the plug wires than you do with everything torn down this far. Consider doing them while you're in there this deep.

Hope this helps. Best of luck with it.

Live well,

SJW